TRANSNATIONAL ENGLISH

Knowledge and Understanding: The course of Transnational English will allow students to gain an adequate knowledge of contemporary Anglo-American literary and cultural texts addressing global, cross-cultural and cross-border contexts.

Applying Knowledge and Understanding: through lectures and guided readings, students will be able to approach the texts by combining their literary and linguistic knowledge with several historical and cultural contexts.

Making Judgement: thanks to class readings and discussions students will be able to independently apply their skills and critical knowledge to a variety of textual genres, from critical and theoretical essays to interviews and articles, from novels to short stories and drama scripts.

Communication Skills: approaching the texts in their original form, students will be able to convey effectively what they have learned during the course and its side-activities.

Learning Skills: students will develop autonomous learning skills through class and autonomous reading and writing work. Being able to write short articles/essays/critical reviews students will improve their approach to processing reading and study material, strengthening necessary skills for their future jobs.

Frontal lessons

Analysis and active reading of critical and literary texts of contemporary Anglo-American literature and culture, aiming at exploring the creative contribution and the intellectual position of anglophone authors of Asiatic, Hispanic, Caraibic, African, Latinx descent, and/or authors whose works engage with cross-cultural, cross-linguistic issues.

Conceptual frameworks and fields of theoretical analysis: race, ethnicity -  postcolonialism, migration/border studies. 

The course aims at strengthening cross-curricular abilities while operating  within the Anglo-American cultural and literary framework. It aims at eliciting an in-depth critique of the texts under analysis, including their modes of production, circulation and reception.

Frontal lessons will be integrated with active reading sessions, active translation practice. Team work will be strongly encouraged.

·       Crystal, David. English as a Global Language. Cambridge : Cambridge UP, 2003, II ed. Ch. I, pp. 1-28; Ch. II pp. 29-71.

·       Paul Jay. Transnational Literature. The Basics Series. NY : Routledge, 2021. Part I & II, pp. 1-179.  

LITERARY TEXTS

·       Ayad Akhtar, Disgraced. London : Bloomsbury Methuen Drama, 2021 [drama script, 2018]. 50 pp.

·       Chimamanda 'Ngozi Adichie, The Thing around Your Neck, London: Fourth Estate, 2009. [short stories]. "The American Embassy.” pp. pp. 128-141 “The Thing around your Neck” 115-127; “Jumping Monkey Hill.” pp. 95-114.

·       Amitav Ghosh, The Hungry Tide, HarperCollins : New York, 2004 [novel] If using another edition, please refer to the title of the chapters :
"The Tide Country." pp. 3-8
"An Invitation." pp. 9-15
"The Launch." pp. 30-35
"Fokir." pp. 63-65
"The Boat." 70-75
"At Anchor." pp. 83-87
"Words." pp. 93-99
"Signs." pp. 316-331

·       Mohsin Hamid, Exit West. London : Penguin Books, 2018. [novel]. 232 pp. Esp. Chapters 1,2,3,4,6,9,11.

·       Jhumpa Lahiri, Interpreter of Maladies. Boston : Mariner Books, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 1999 [short stories];
"When Mr. Pirzada Came to Dine." pp. 23-42 ; “Sexy.” pp. 83-110; + one more story of your choice.

·        __. The Namesake, Houghton Mifflin, Boston/New York, 2003. selections.  Ch. 1: pp. 1-20.

Ulteriori materiali teorici e critici  (saggi, articoli) verranno distribuiti durante le lezioni e caricati sulle piattaforme STUDIUM e Teams. Si faccia riferimento alle notifiche aggiornate di STUDIUM.

Si ricorda che, ai sensi dell’art. 171 della legge 22 aprile 1941, n. 633 e successive disposizioni, fotocopiare libri in commercio, in misura superiore al 15% del volume o del fascicolo di rivista, è reato penale.

Per ulteriori informazioni sui vincoli e sulle sanzioni all’uso illecito di fotocopie, è possibile consultare le Linee guida sulla gestione dei diritti d’autore nelle università (a cura della Associazione Italiana per i Diritti di Riproduzione delle opere dell’ingegno - AIDRO).